Chapter 113

 

***

 

He alternated his gaze between the door from where the noise was coming and Melody.

‘What should I do?’

While he pondered, another explosion was heard.

The delay caused by Jeremiah might have worsened the accident.

“Jeremiah! Magician Baldwin!”

No, the scream of another magician indicated that an accident had occurred in another room without a doubt.

‘This is maddening!’

He frantically tugged at his sky-blue hair.

Even in this chaotic situation, his solid ‘instinctual warning signal’ hesitated to let go of Melody.

‘Why? Why is this happening?’

As he repeatedly asked himself the same question,

Someone burst open his door without warning.

The sign hung on the door that read ‘Do Not Disturb Under Any Circumstances’ was completely ignored, as they entered with boldness.

“Ah.”

In that moment, Jeremiah unintentionally pushed Melody’s shoulder, causing her to roll off and fall onto the sofa’s backrest.

“…!”

Jeremiah was shocked and immediately checked on Melody’s condition.

He had thought it would be a disaster if she fell from him, but Melody was sweetly asleep, even smacking her lips.

Jeremiah glanced at his hands and chest, wondering if the problem was because she had been leaning on him.

‘It seems there’s no issue.’

Both his body and magical power were normal, except for a profound sense of emptiness.

“…Master.”

Turning at the sound of his name, Magician Pierce, who had unceremoniously opened the door, stood there.

“Ma, Magician Pierce.”

Jeremiah found himself stuttering, struggling even to meet Pierce’s gaze.

“Master, with a sign saying ‘Do Not Disturb’ hung up, what exactly were you…”

“That’s always hung up as a precaution!”

Jeremiah suddenly stood up and shouted.

He didn’t know why, but his face felt hot, as if he had been caught in an embarrassing act.

‘Well, it is an embarrassing… situation.’

An outcome entirely different from the intended experiment had been derived, and he was unable to properly identify the cause. This was a deeply embarrassing situation for a magician.

“Pierce… Could you leave us for a moment?”

“What? But…”

“I was just momentarily taken aback. I wish to be alone.”

Taken aback? Besides, he wasn’t alone, was he?

Pierce looked back and forth several times between the noble lady sleeping soundly on the sofa, unaware of the world, and Jeremiah.

Frankly, it looked exceedingly suspicious.

Right before he opened the door, Jeremiah had been holding the lady in his arms.

Well, it wasn’t strange for Jeremiah, who was of an age where having a fiancée wouldn’t be odd, to understand that.

The problem was that the lady who had fallen from his embrace was unconscious.

Pierce was well aware of how the peculiar affections of eccentric magicians could lead to terrifying incidents under the guise of ‘perfect possession.’

“Calm down, Master. No, Jeremiah Baldwin.”

“I am perfectly calm.”

“No, you are in a state of terrible excitement. Of course, that can happen during puberty!”

“I am not going through puberty.”

Pierce felt even more alarmed at such a typical teenage response.

“Do you say you’re not in puberty with such an impure demeanor…!”

“Well.”

As Jeremiah hesitated for a moment, Pierce began to cautiously approach them.

‘I need to check who the other party is.’

Before the tower’s prized genius could cause a bizarre accident.

But just a few steps away, Jeremiah blocked his path.

“Do not come any closer.”

“Baldwin. As you know, it’s basic practice in the tower to share all accident scenes!”

Despite his claim, Jeremiah refused to step aside.

“I do not wish for anyone else but me to see this yet.”

Of course, that was a strictly scholarly statement, implying he didn’t want to share the accident situation, which even he hadn’t properly grasped, with another magician.

However, Pierce’s face, already set in a suspicious direction, turned pale.

“Magician Baldwin, you must not cause such accidents! You are the future of magicians!”

Despite his pleading words, Jeremiah responded calmly with a cool gaze.

“The accident has already happened.”

“What?! What did you say?! It has already happened?!”

From afar, another ‘bang!’ was heard, as something exploded.

Pierce clasped his head with both hands, thinking that not only his mind but also the future of the magic tower seemed to be exploding in such a manner.

 

***

 

Jeremiah actually regained his composure perfectly.

After Pierce retreated in a panic, Jeremiah was able to check on Melody’s condition as if nothing had happened.

However, Magician Pierce made a fuss, insisting that the precious genius was undoubtedly going through a ‘dangerous puberty.’

He argued to other magicians that this fact had to be reported to the tower master.

But the other magicians opposed, arguing that they couldn’t call someone who had gone on a distant business trip for such a matter.

Then where should they seek help?

They pondered who could stop the deviant actions of this powerful teenage boy.

Fortunately, the clever magicians could think of a suitable person for the job.

They went to find that individual at the fastest speed and were able to safely bring him to the magic tower within a few minutes, even saying, “The future of the magic tower depends on your efforts.”

Finally, that person arrived in front of Jeremiah’s room.

 

***

 

Arriving at the magic tower upon the earnest request of the magicians, ‘Ronny Baldwin’ knocked on Jeremiah’s door, carrying their hopes on his shoulders.

“Je… remiah?”

Calling out with a cautious voice, the door soon opened.

Ronny glanced back.

The magicians were already looking up at Ronny with faces filled with emotion.

The great Magician Pierce had been chased out of that room, but Jeremiah opened the door for Ronny himself!

“Please, come in.”

“You must guide Magician Baldwin back to the right path.”

“Remember, you are dealing with a teenage boy. Please be mindful of that.”

Someone murmured worriedly, “Ronny himself might still be going through puberty,” but the comment didn’t reach Ronny’s ears, blocked by the other magicians.

In any case, Ronny liked the idea of someone placing their expectations on him.

Moreover, since these were great magicians, their words were enough to uplift Ronny’s spirits.

He wore a stern expression.

“Just trust me.”

Afterwards, he confidently walked into Jeremiah’s room and looked around.

Considering the magicians had been crying, “Master Jeremiah seems to be attempting a dangerous experiment!”, he expected a mess. However, the room was in perfect order.

All the books were neatly arranged, and the writing instruments on the desk were organized following a specific rule.

Jeremiah, standing in front of him, greeted Ronny with his usual polite demeanor.

That tidy appearance seemed very far from the ‘characteristics of puberty’ the magicians were claiming.

“Good day, brother.”

Ronny nodded at the polite greeting.

“Sorry for coming without contacting you first. The magicians were worried about you, so I came to check.”

Ronny smiled warmly, a look of relief on his face.

“It seems there’s no issue.”

Following his smile, Jeremiah also smiled.

“Yes, there’s no big issue.”

“But why are all the magicians making such a fuss?”

Ronny and Jeremiah simultaneously turned to the slightly open door.

The magicians, caught peeking inside, were startled and finally hurried to close the door.

Jeremiah sighed softly.

“It’s embarrassing, but that’s usual here. The tower is never free of big and small accidents, and they always make a fuss like this.”

“Every time?”

“Yes, and they come looking for me, begging me to solve the situation. It’s truly incomprehensible.”

In unexpected situations, one should be more alert, thought Jeremiah to himself.

Of course, Jeremiah had been slightly flustered a moment ago, not knowing what to do.

But at least he hadn’t caused trouble for the other magicians or run around the tower screaming, which would have been disgraceful.

“So, there’s no issue?”

Ronny asked for confirmation, and Jeremiah nodded.

“Yes, there was a very minor accident, but the situation has been assessed now.”

“That’s good to hear. Oh, right.”

Ronny seemed to remember something and looked around the room. He noticed a curtain sectioning off part of the room.

Ronny felt somewhat curious about it but didn’t pay much attention, as he had something else he wanted to know.

“Has Melody gone back?”

“If you’re asking about Miss Higgins, she hasn’t left yet.”

“Still? It’s almost dinner time. Send her back soon.”

Ronny casually mentioned this after glancing at the clock.

However, the response he received from Jeremiah was somewhat odd, prompting him to look up.

“That’s not possible.”

“…What?”

Ronny, taken aback, found himself inadvertently looking towards the curtain he had noticed earlier.

Something about that area seemed suspicious.

But since it was unlikely for Jeremiah to cause a strange accident, Ronny tried to dismiss his concern and looked away.

“Impossible?”

Unlike Ronny, who asked with evident tension, Jeremiah replied calmly as if it were a matter of fact.

“Didn’t I tell you? There was a minor accident.”

“What kind of… accident?”

Ronny swallowed nervously, waiting for the answer.

Instead of responding, Jeremiah turned and began to walk a few steps forward.

Towards the very curtain that Ronny had been suspiciously eyeing.